Muay Thai In MMA

The Art of Eight Limbs, Muay Thai is one of the most effective striking bases in MMA!!

We break down the transition of one of the world’s most popular martial arts in to MMA…

One of the fastest growing sports in the world today, mixed martial arts (MMA), owes it’s success to the origins of fighting. If it weren’t for the rampant obsession with various styles of unarmed combat throughout history, there would be no base for such a promotion to exist, let alone flourish.

One such base style is Muay Thai, the art can be traced back to the 16th century, originally known as Siamese style boxing and made famous by Nai Khanomtom in 1767. The Siam fighter was captured by the Burmese during battle, and was given the opportunity by his captors to fight for freedom. He used what would later be called Muay Thai to win the fight and gain his release, and became a national hero. It was this single event that helped catapult the art to becoming a national sport soon after.

Fast forward to present day MMA, and Muay Thai is more alive than ever. Coaches and fighters recognise the advantages gained in the striking department when Thai boxing is introduced, and it shows in some of the top strikers’ game-plans and resulting finishes.

The striking parts of the body in Muay Thai are the fists, elbows, knees and shins. Clinching is also allowed. With these tools, the techniques are broken down in to six categories, as follows; Punching (Chok), elbow (Sok), kicking (te), knees (Ti Khao), foot thrust (Theep) and clinch/neck wrestling (Chap Kho). Within these categories there are many different methods of delivering the techniques, and many transition perfectly in to MMA.

Although the fundamentals of stance and striking style are very different to that of a solely MMA trained fighter, the most effective movements of Muay Thai can be tailored in to a combatant’s arsenal to devastating effect!

Source: www.lowkickmma.com

10 Reasons Why Muay Thai Is The Perfect Martial Art

Developed over hundreds of years, the ancient martial art of Muay Thai is known for its tremendous power, maximum efficiency, and raw simplicity. Often referred to as the “Art of Eight Limbs”, Muay Thai utilizes a beautiful symphony of kicks, punches, knees, and elbows with fluidity and grace.

Muay Thai is now one of the most well-known and practiced martial arts in the world. It has proven to be effective, which is why it is most common striking base in the vastly popular, fast growing sport of mixed martial arts.

We give you 10 reasons why Muay Thai is the perfect martial art:

1) It is widely recognized as the most effective striking art in the world.

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Muay Thai is by far the most effective striking art in the world. Muay Thai has been tested in competition and real-life situations for hundreds of years, refining the art to be as fast, efficient, and powerful as it can be. On top of that, its consistent testing in combat between highly skilled practitioners has developed every aspect of the art to an extremely high level.

2) It is effective in all ranges of standup fighting.

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Muay Thai is a martial art and combat sport unlike any other. The art incorporates the use of knees, elbows, shins and hands. This allows the practitioner to use all the weapons available to the human body in kicking range, punching range, and the clinch, making it effective in all ranges of standup fighting unlike most other striking based martial arts.

3) It is simple and easy to learn.

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While there are hundreds of different techniques in Muay Thai, it is also a martial art known for it’s raw simplicity. That’s why Muay Thai is for everyone: men, women and children alike. In Thailand, it is actually more common for practitioners to start as young as five or six years old.

4) It is highly effective for self-defense.

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Muay Thai is also one of the few martial arts in the world that has been undeniably battle-tested and street certified for real-life encounters. Although widely regarded as a striking based martial art, Muay Thai also contains throwing techniques, locks, using of an opponent’s own momentum, and even submissions. The conditioning of mind, body and spirit involved in Muay Thai also gives practitioners the confidence needed for real-life self defense situations.

5) It is both an aerobic and anaerobic workout.

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Muay thai is specifically designed to promote the level of fitness and toughness required for ring competition even for recreational practitioners. With running, jumping rope and shadowboxing it provides an aerobic workout to prepare you for more intense workouts. Muay Thai also builds great anaerobic endurance with exercises like punching and kicking on the pads or bags, and clinching to work your body to its limits. This makes Muay Thai not just a perfect martial art, but also a very effective form of exercise. With continued training, Muay Thai will vastly improve your strength, dexterity, and cardiovascular performance.

6) It burns over 1,000 calories an hour.

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Nothing spells perfect more than a martial art with the ability to help you burn 1,000 calories an hour. Muay Thai is the standard of a perfect total body workout. It is a fun and efficient way to burn fat and lose weight that also builds your core, flexibility and overall strength.

7) It toughens your mind, body, and spirit. 

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The art of Muay Thai toughens your mind, body, and spirit. As the late great Muay Thai Grandmaster Kru Yodtong Senanan once said, “Muay Thai is good for your confidence and inner strength.” On top of enhancing your physical conditioning, Muay Thai builds confidence and promotes discipline of the mind through the control of emotions and feelings.

8) It is one of the key foundations for the sport of MMA.

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As the most effective striking martial art in the world, it is no wonder why Muay Thai has become one of the key foundations of the vastly popular, fast growing sport of mixed martial arts (MMA). Some of MMA’s greatest fighters and champions use the art of Muay Thai as their main striking base.

9) It will unleash your human potential in all areas of life

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One of the biggest misinterpretations of Muay Thai is that it is just a sport of violence. But like many martial arts, Muay thai also cultivates important values that are rooted in rich tradition. It has the power to humble, discipline, and also inspire, which is arguably the most important aspect of any martial art. Muay Thai instills in its practitioners many great qualities including courage, humility and warrior spirit. These qualities will no doubt help you unleash your greatest potential in all areas of life.

10) Beneficial and Enriching…

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To sum it all up, Muay Thai is beneficial for just about anyone. But remember, it is also up to the practitioner to make learning this perfect martial art even more enjoyable and enriching.

If your interested in joining us, please email Leigh at: kruleigh@lincolnthaiboxing.co.uk or ring: 07757 984266.

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Some info sourced from: www.evolve-mma.com